Quality of Provision

The Quality of Provision Key Performance Area (KPA) has one performance indicator: Ofsted’s current judgement on the overall effectiveness of the college or provider. This is because we consider that the Framework should be based on objective indicators and evidence.

While Ofsted's judgement will provide evidence for individual colleges and providers, it may not reflect their current position. During the pilot, the LSC will work with Ofsted to explore options for taking account of this, including the use of information from monitoring visits and the scope for using Ofsted’s consideration of a college’s or provider’s self-assessment.

The arrangements described above are slightly different from what we said in Annex C of the March 2007 Framework for Excellence publication, which stated that the Quality of Provision KPA would be assessed by two performance indicators: Ofsted inspection reports and self-assessment that has been risk assessed by Ofsted. As it is vitally important (for example in the context of self-regulation) that the Framework is based – and seen to be based – on objective indicators and evidence, this assessment will, at least initially, be based on one performance indicator – Ofsted’s current judgement on the overall effectiveness of a college or provider.

New colleges or providers that have not been inspected in the current or previous cycles, will be exempt from the Quality of Provision KPA until such time as they have been inspected by Ofsted.

The Quality of Provision KPA will also take into account the findings of monitoring visits which identify provision as ‘satisfactory but improving’ and ‘satisfactory and not improving’.